Reports claim that the man was later revealed to be a plain clothes police officer who had been concerned about Bieber's safety, but the popstar and his security team had not initially been aware of his identity, prompting a scuffle.

Bieber's spokesperson Matthew Hiltzik later told the New York Post that the incident had been a "momentary well-intentioned misunderstanding" and that Bieber was "completely fine".

The popstar has yet to acknowledge the incident himself, although he did take to his Twitter account after the perfume launch to thank the fans who turned up: "Today went well at macy's.. the fans were AMAZING, thanks to all the fans who came out to support it was a breath of fresh air :) (sic)"